The police command in Borno has arrested five suspects in connection with the alleged processing and selling of meat from cow carcasses in Maiduguri.

This was disclosed by Nahum Kenneth Daso, the command’s spokesman, in a statement on Monday.

“On 29th July, 2026, at about 0800hrs, operatives of the command’s Violent Crime Response Unit (Crack Squad), acting on credible intelligence, apprehended five suspects at the Old Maiduguri Cattle Market,” he said.

The suspects are Modu Umar, 43, Abba Mohammed, 24, Adam Abubakar, 21, Faruq Gambo, 19 and Mada Usman, 24.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspects conspired to obtain cattle found dead, butchered the carcasses and supplied the meat to roadside meat vendors for onward sale to members of the public, said the police.

“At the time of arrest, the suspects were allegedly found in possession of the carcass of a dead cow, which they were reportedly attempting to transport to the Morumti area of Maiduguri for further processing and distribution,” the statement explained.

It added that the suspects are currently in police custody while a discreet investigation is ongoing to determine the full extent of the activity and trace the intended distribution network.

The command said efforts were ongoing to apprehend other suspects.